Tokina announces 20mm f/2 for full-frame Sony E-mount; preps 35mm, 50mm, 85mm T1.5 cinema primes
posted Wednesday, September 14, 2016 at 6:59 AM EDT
Continuing the incredible deluge of lens news of late, Japan's Kenko Tokina has unveiled a new lens line for mirrorless camera optics, and populated it with its first offering for full-frame Sony E-mount cameras. And the company has also announced several new optics aimed at the fast-growing cinema lens market.
Dubbed "FíRIN", the name of Tokina's new lens line is a play on the old Irish word "Fírinne", meaning "Truth", the company says. The first FíRIN-series lens is the Tokina FíRIN 20mm F2 FE MF, and according to Tokina the physical design of the lens is intended to match that of Sony's Alpha A7-series camera bodies. Although it's a fully manual lens, it can encode aperture, focus distance and optical data which is then passed to the camera body, allowing for use of the camera's five-axis image stabilization, manual-focus assist functionality, electronic distance scale and optical correction functions.
As you'd expect of a lens aimed at manual shooting, it also has a generously-sized focus ring with distance scale and depth-of-field index bar, as well as a separate aperture ring. The latter has an optional click detent, and when de-clicked is well-suited to video capture, not just stills. On the inside, there's a 13-element, 11-group optical formula with multi-coatings applied throughout. Of the 13 elements, two are all-glass precision molded aspherics, and three are crafted from Super-Low Dispersion glass, and there's a nine-bladed aperture for more attractive bokeh.
The Tokina FíRIN 20mm F2 FE MF can focus to as close as 11 inches for a 1:10.33 magnification ratio, and accepts 62mm threaded filters. It has a length of 3.2 inches, a maximum diameter of 2.7 inches and weighs 17.3 ounces. A square bayonet lens hood is included in the product bundle. Availability is slated for the first quarter of 2017, and Tokina has yet to reveal pricing for the lens.
As well as its new FíRIN lens line, Tokina also recently showed off another new line consisting of three new full-frame cinema primes at the recent 2016 IBC show, although these new products don't seem to appear anywhere we can find on the company's many websites. The folks over at News Shooter have all the details, but you can get the highlights in the video above. The new cinema prime selection includes full-frame 35mm T1.5, 50mm T1.5 and 85mm T1.5 optics, each with nine-bladed apertures and a generous 300-degree focus throw.
All three lenses share the same 112mm filter thread size and 114mm-diameter fronts, and also share identical iris and focus control positions, making it quicker and easier to switch back and forth between different focal lengths. According to News Shooter's coverage, these lenses will provide sufficient resolution for 8K video capture, and will have minimal focus breathing or chromatic aberration. Delivery isn't anticipated until January 2017, with pricing of around US$4,000 for the 35mm and 50mm optics, or US$4,500 for the 85mm lens. Lens mount types will include Arri PL, Canon EF, Micro Four Thirds and Sony E-mount.
One final lens announcement from Tokina is a 16-28mm II T3 zoom lens. This is apparently similar to the existing 16-28mm T3 optic, but with updated markings to match the new cinema primes. Hop on over to News Shooter for more details...
(via Sony Alpha Rumors and News Shooter)